Player Discussion Tyler Kleven (D) at 44th Overall (Sens traded up)

[Micklebot]

I think there's a couple things going on here.

Start of the year, he was a bit of an unknown, other teams didn't know his tendencies or what his strength and weaknesses were, but as the year went on, opposing teams were able to break down where he still struggles and focus on that. Meanwhile, he's getting more comfortable with the speed of the NHL game and getting his timing down for when to punch and when not to, he was taking some additional risks and getting caught, but at the same time getting a better feel for what does and doesn't work.

I personally love his game, it's still in development so there are some growing pains, but he isn't going to learn what does and doesn't work at this level without breaking a few eggs at this level.

He's got a great shot, both wrist and clapper, good mobility, is good at shielding the puck from the forecheck using his body, can lay out the odd huge hit, lots to love. He isn't an offensive Dman but has enough there to chip in. Defensively he has excellent reach and mobility. I think he's going to get better and better as time goes on.

 

[Pierre from Orleans]

I think there's a couple things going on here.

Start of the year, he was a bit of an unknown, other teams didn't know his tendencies or what his strength and weaknesses were, but as the year went on, opposing teams were able to break down where he still struggles and focus on that. Meanwhile, he's getting more comfortable with the speed of the NHL game and getting his timing down for when to punch and when not to, he was taking some additional risks and getting caught, but at the same time getting a better feel for what does and doesn't work.

I personally love his game, it's still in development so there are some growing pains, but he isn't going to learn what does and doesn't work at this level without breaking a few eggs at this level.

He's got a great shot, both wrist and clapper, good mobility, is good at shielding the puck from the forecheck using his body, can lay out the odd huge hit, lots to love. He isn't an offensive Dman but has enough there to chip in. Defensively he has excellent reach and mobility. I think he's going to get better and better as time goes on.

I think him having a puck moving defenceman as a partner would bode very well.

 

[PlayOn]

I think him having a puck moving defenceman as a partner would bode very well.

Him and Yak might make for a really great pair someday.

 

[coladin]

I think there's a couple things going on here.

Start of the year, he was a bit of an unknown, other teams didn't know his tendencies or what his strength and weaknesses were, but as the year went on, opposing teams were able to break down where he still struggles and focus on that. Meanwhile, he's getting more comfortable with the speed of the NHL game and getting his timing down for when to punch and when not to, he was taking some additional risks and getting caught, but at the same time getting a better feel for what does and doesn't work.

I personally love his game, it's still in development so there are some growing pains, but he isn't going to learn what does and doesn't work at this level without breaking a few eggs at this level.

He's got a great shot, both wrist and clapper, good mobility, is good at shielding the puck from the forecheck using his body, can lay out the odd huge hit, lots to love. He isn't an offensive Dman but has enough there to chip in. Defensively he has excellent reach and mobility. I think he's going to get better and better as time goes on.

And he is sneaky nifty...which is the most intriguing part f his game, for me

 

[Micklebot]

Him and Yak might make for a really great pair someday.

I think they'll potentially start next season together,

 

[Senscore]

Him and Yak might make for a really great pair someday.

We can call them Yakkle

 

[Butchy Dakkar]

He’s already well ahead of JBD. Looking really good, evasive and poised, potential to develop some offense.

Not making bad pinches last few games, which is great, that can be coached.

 

[bicboi64]

I wouldn't call him as good or better than JBD. He's a young defender who played well the first 14-16 games of the season, but naturally is making mistakes and learning.

Way too early to tell, but he's closer to being the answer for the 3rd pair instead of a liability, but I fully expect him to have periods of messing up later on in the season. He's still developing, it's bound to happen

 

[Silky Johnson]

We can call them Yakkle

Please no.

 

[SAS]

I am curious how Kleven has looked recently. It’s been 3 weeks since this last post. Has he continued to improve and develop?

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

I am curious how Kleven has looked recently. It’s been 3 weeks since this last post. Has he continued to improve and develop?

IMO overall yes. I think he is coming along.. but the road has some bumps

 

[Micklebot]

I am curious how Kleven has looked recently. It’s been 3 weeks since this last post. Has he continued to improve and develop?

He was never expected to be a big point producer, think Carlo as a comparable.

He started off really strong and eventually hit a bit of a bump where he struggled a bit with his decision making. Lately he's been keeping it simple so no I'll advised pinches, I like how he's played and developed

 

[JD1]

I think he's shaping up to have a great 2nd half. We're almost at the half way point and we've had a difficult schedule thus far. We've got an opponent and home friendly schedule in the second half that will give Greene good opportunity to control his deployment. I think we're going to see a good step forward

 

[HSF]

I am curious how Kleven has looked recently. It’s been 3 weeks since this last post. Has he continued to improve and develop?

struggles on the road with poor matchups

he will need to be better in the 2nd half

 

[JD1]

struggles on the road with poor matchups

he will need to be better in the 2nd half

A rookie bottom pair guy struggles on the road when the opponent has more opportunity to get their top line out against him

I didn't see that coming

 

[thinkwild]

Sometimes he looks really good, smartly and effectively moving the puck. And then at other times - what i still assume are rookie mistakes. I'm still really hopeful he is on his way to becoming a key piece of the team

 

[HSF]

A rookie bottom pair guy struggles on the road when the opponent has more opportunity to get their top line out against him

I didn't see that coming

our GM didn't with minimal depth

 

[JD1]

our GM didn't with minimal depth

Well now let's think this through

Guys on the internet foresaw a potential trouble spot but our GM, with a 1,000 games in the NHL as a defenceman, never saw this coming.

Somehow I'm not buying thst

 

[HSF]

Well now let's think this through

Guys on the internet foresaw a potential trouble spot but our GM, with a 1,000 games in the NHL as a defenceman, never saw this coming.

Somehow I'm not buying thst

You think our defensive depth was good going into the season with having all of Hamonic, JBD and Kleven on the roster with one injury?

Like you said its obvious that a young player would struggle which is why it makes sense to add depth so he doesn't have to play every single game

 

[JD1]

You think our defensive depth was good going into the season with having all of Hamonic, JBD and Kleven on the roster with one injury?

Like you said its obvious that a young player would struggle which is why it makes sense to add depth so he doesn't have to play every single game

I didn't comment on the defensive depth

You said our GM didn't appear to see a rookie 3rd pair guy struggling on the road. I disagreed with you.

That's got nothing to do with thoughts on defensive depth. Of course it's a concern. And of course Staois saw it as a concern.

How a rookie D handles the road in the dog days of the season is something that all GMs that dress rookie D are concerned about

To be honest, it's a bit shocking that someone that posts here regularly would actually think an nhl gm wouldn't see that type of struggle coming or wouldn't be concerned about it

 

[HSF]

I didn't comment on the defensive depth

You said our GM didn't appear to see a rookie 3rd pair guy struggling on the road. I disagreed with you.

That's got nothing to do with thoughts on defensive depth. Of course it's a concern. And of course Staois saw it as a concern.

How a rookie D handles the road in the dog days of the season is something that all GMs that dress rookie D are concerned about

To be honest, it's a bit shocking that someone that posts here regularly would actually think an nhl gm wouldn't see that type of struggle coming or wouldn't be concerned about it

Surprised that a poster that posts as regularly as you and has seen previous GMs doesn't understand that GMs make mistakes or overlook certain aspects of their team all the time.

Case in point many many fans were saying Yzerman did a poor job in the summer of improving the Red Wings...one of the greatest players ever.

Not sure why you feel the need to tip ride the GM when its clear that the defensive depth should have been improved in the offseason to allow for Kleven to have some breathing room. Kleven does need to be better since playing on the road is a huge part of the nhl...duh

 

[JD1]

Surprised that a poster that posts as regularly as you and has seen previous GMs doesn't understand that GMs make mistakes or overlook certain aspects of their team all the time.

Case in point many many fans were saying Yzerman did a poor job in the summer of improving the Red Wings...one of the greatest players ever.

Not sure why you feel the need to tip ride the GM when its clear that the defensive depth should have been improved in the offseason to allow for Kleven to have some breathing room. Kleven does need to be better since playing on the road is a huge part of the nhl...duh

Do you pay attention to what the GM says?

His top 3 priorities were
1. Goaltending
2. Balancing the D
3. Adding vet experience in the bottom 6

He did those things.


The fact is a rookie is a rookie until he plays a season and is no longer a rookie. And I'd be fairly confident that ALL NHL brass have concerns about rookie's ability to handle the road, the length of the season, the pressure etc.

You posted you didn't think Staois saw Kleven struggling on the road. I disagree. Let's move on.

 

[HSF]

Do you pay attention to what the GM says?

His top 3 priorities were
1. Goaltending
2. Balancing the D
3. Adding vet experience in the bottom 6

He did those things.


The fact is a rookie is a rookie until he plays a season and is no longer a rookie. And I'd be fairly confident that ALL NHL brass have concerns about rookie's ability to handle the road, the length of the season, the pressure etc.

I didn't know a GM can only do 3 things. Staois has done good things and has overlooked some areas. Lets see what he does going forward here but it is clear that bottom pairing some insulation.

Do you think Yzerman is doing an excellent job since he played over a 1000 games in the nhl?

 

[PlayOn]

I didn't know a GM can only do 3 things. Staois has done good things and has overlooked some areas. Lets see what he does going forward here but it is clear that bottom pairing some insulation.

Do you think Yzerman is doing an excellent job since he played over a 1000 games in the nhl?

He’s limited by cap space. He prioritized other things, doesn’t mean he didn’t see this as an issue. I’d argue there are still about 5 more things to fix on this team, if he knocks out 2-3 every summer you can live with that.

Also, there are pros to having better defensive depth obviously, but the flip side is at some point Kleven has to learn. He can only do that with consistent minutes.

If they plan on bringing Yakemchuk on board in the next year or two, a more experienced Kleven is probably important because you don’t want two dmen learning on the fly when you’re trying to win. Staios might look at it more as a short-term loss for a long-term win. When we’re seriously contending we can’t be doing this but we are still somewhat in a development phase.

 

[HSF]

He’s limited by cap space. He prioritized other things, doesn’t mean he didn’t see this as an issue. I’d argue there are still about 5 more things to fix on this team, if he knocks out 2-3 every summer you can live with that.

Also, there are pros to having better defensive depth obviously, but the flip side is at some point Kleven has to learn. He can only do that with consistent minutes.

If they plan on bringing Yakemchuk on board in the next year or two, a more experienced Kleven is probably important because you don’t want two dmen learning on the fly when you’re trying to win. Staios might look at it more as a short-term loss for a long-term win. When we’re seriously contending we can’t be doing this but we are still somewhat in a development phase.

I have no problem having kleven on the roster and learning I do think it was a bit of a miss potentially having him with another young guy in JBD and also having all of Kleven, JBD and Hamonic on the roster after 1 injury. I don't think Kleven has to play every night and it might actually help his development sitting out a few games here and there.

I don't buy the capspace issue. They chose to overpay to bring Perron. Lets see if it pays off. They also chose to not buyout Hamonic. I do think we need to be using our cap space a bit more wisely going forward